The Big Ten Conference on Wednesday recognized a total of 977 fall sports student-athletes who have been named to the Academic All-Conference team. [ MORE: View 2014 Academic All-Big Ten honorees ] The list of honored student-athletes features 91 field hockey players, 299 football players, 77 men’s and 153 women’s cross country runners, 88 men’s and 170 women’s soccer players and 99 volleyball players. To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, student-athletes must be letterwinners who are in at least their second academic year at their institution and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. At least

On BTN’s “Big Ten Championship Pregame Show” we revealed the Big Ten Football Images of the Year, which included Ameer Abdullah’s game winning TD against McNeese State and Melvin Gordon’s record-breaking performance against Nebraska. The segment also included an incredible original painting by Barrett Keithley who approached a blank canvas and created a masterpiece. Watch it all in this post.

Even though it’s bowl eligible with six wins, could Penn State—or any other 6-6 and 7-5 Big Ten team–be left out of the postseason? Greg Pickel of Pennlive.com says the outcome of Saturday’s Big Ten championship game between Wisconsin and Ohio State will be a major factor in determining whether a team stays home or not. If Wisconsin beats Ohio State, it’s a near certainty that everyone is going bowling because the Big Ten would likely have three programs — Ohio State, Michigan State, and Wisconsin — in a New Year’s bowl. If the Buckeyes win, however, the league could